Hey, this is Dave Hahn calling from Camp 1 on Mount Everest. A good day for us up here. We got up this morning at about 6:00 in the morning and set out at 8:00 to explore the last couple of ladder crossings in the Western Cwm, they go about halfway to Camp 2. Our intention today was just exercise and getting to know the lay of the land. Our hope is tomorrow to get a good acclimatization hike in going all the way to Camp 2 and then coming back down here to Camp 1 for that next night. The afternoon today after we get back to camp was pretty quiet. It was snowing lightly, kinda socked in. We just took the opportunity to rest and recuperate inside our tents and continue our acclimatization process. Thank you.
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
RMI Guide and Everest Expedition Leader, Dave Hahn, calling in from Camp 1.
The 2015 Mt. Everest season has been a tough start with big snow storms here at base camp, but full steam ahead right now. The snow that kept us from moving up earlier has blossomed to some nice days. You would be amazed at the difference on the glacier since last week. Rivers running, pools forming and a route through the ice fall that has allowed a reasonable ascent to Camp 1, where the team is at this very moment. I just got off the radio with Dave and word is, all well. I was able to follow the team's climb up the ice fall with my tripod-mounted spotting scope. They were at times obscured from view by huge ice towers and the route taking them down into the depths of the glacier, out of sight, and then minutes later they would they pop back into view. Their training, adjusting to the altitude and experience at this sort of wild climbing paid off with what I can guarantee you was one of the most amazing and memorable days in these mountaineers climbing careers. So proud of this group as I watched them progress through the Khumbu Icefall working the mountain, assisting each other, and sticking together in pure style and grace. Way to go team!
RMI Guide and Everest Base Camp Manager Mark TuckerDave Hahn called in after reaching Camp 1 and his audio is posted below.
RMI Everest Expedition Leader, Dave Hahn, calling in from Camp 1.
Phantastic and best wishes to all of you!
You passed the first barrier and I hope you arrived safe in Camp 2! It´s really great to follow your climb!
Sunny weather and good health to everybody - Ute
Posted by: Ute Novak on 4/24/2015 at 7:21 am
Dave & Team - absolutely fascinating following your journey. I wake up at 2 AM to read the blogs now. They are becoming very interesting—passing the icefalls and making high camp. :) Be safe.
Today was a well-earned rest day for all. But it was also a day of getting ready to go higher; carefully selecting food and gear for what we hope to be a three night stay at Camp One, above the Icefall. We've had a longer stay at comfy Base Camp than we'd expected, and so it will be a little tough committing to the normal discomforts of a camp in the snow at 20,000 ft, but in the plus column, we will be a little better acclimated than we might have been with an earlier foray to the Western Cwm. And we are eager to get on with the climb... Which is a big plus.
Our enthusiasm is tempered by the looming prospect of bidding a teammate goodbye. Larry Seaton has been climbing hard and pushing himself to extremes in the face of a number of physical setbacks. True to character, he isn't satisfied with staggering up Mount Everest at or beyond his limit... Larry has always been an asset to his climbing teams and won't chance being a liability to this one. He'll bow out and will head towards home in the near future. Obviously the team feels for Larry and regrets losing a key member, but we all applaud his prudent decision.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Is Chhering Dorjee Sherpa with you at your camp? He has a friend from Castle Mountain, Pincher Creek, Alberta, Canada (Marie Cameron) who is wondering.
Posted by: Chris McSweeney on 4/26/2015 at 10:47 pm
I miss you, Larry! Hope you are safe. You are smart for knowing your boundaries.
From,
Tina from Mt. Shasta.
Finally, the storm has fled. It was about six days of snow or the threat of snow... But the wind blew like crazy last night and our bad weather is now somebody else's bad weather. Bright and strong sunshine all day today... T-Shirts were just fine at midday in Everest Base Camp. The Icefall Doctors were hard at work in the big jumble and the rest of us stayed out of their way, just as planned. Teams could be seen clawing all over the ice towers close to camp, practicing in their own little chutes and ladders gymnasiums. We took an afternoon cruise through the maze of ice ridges and towers in the "safe" part of the glacier and then tried to catch up on 3G connections. Internet access has been a little squirrelly these past days what with the cloud blocking solar power and the wind wrecking reflector dishes. Word by late afternoon was that the route is almost restored to Camp One... With some difficult trail breaking through new snow remaining to be done. I'll try to keep up with our Sherpa team early tomorrow with C1 as our goal (once again). JJ Justman will take our climber gang hiking.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
The storm may be coming to an end. We hope. It was still snowing yesterday, and predictions had it continuing today, but despite a great deal of cloud and moisture in the air... we've got sunshine on Everest Base Camp.
There is no climbing activity in the Icefall today out of respect for the Nepali men who -one year ago- lost their lives in the avalanche off Everest's West Shoulder. This somewhat grim anniversary has been made a little worse by our recent inability to get through the glacier. The reasons... bad weather and shifting glacial ice, are perfectly normal in this game, but against the backdrop of last year's season-ending tragedy, the barrier to the Western Cwm seems more formidable than ever. Early yesterday morning I accompanied our Sherpa team into the start of the difficult sections, but we along with perhaps 70 Sherpas from other teams had to turn around when a combination of vertical ladders was discovered to have been destroyed by shifting ice. We were back in camp before the normal wakeup and breakfast time... and it must be admitted that sitting in a chair sipping coffee beat balancing over treacherous and tedious crevasse crossings, but... as I say, it would have been a major boost to morale and to the team's progress to have made Camp One. That will now have to wait until the route is repaired and the storm has exited. It will happen. In the mean time, our team is simply in the same situation as a couple dozen others... maintain mental and physical readiness. We did it yesterday afternoon by going on a brisk hike toward Pumori Camp One. Today, it seemed best to give the team their freedom... some chose a hike down to the tea houses of Gorak Shep, some chose showers and good books in basecamp. Realistically, there will be more waiting to endure. The Icefall Doctors need to do a fair bit of work to make the route passible tomorrow and the climbing teams have decided not to crowd them in their labors. So we'll wait. And we'll be ready when our chance for climbing comes.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Pardon the typos and bad “cut and pastes”. I’m just so excited, and interested in the challenges facing Emily, and all of the climbers up there this year, and with the new Khumbu icefall routefinding (so important right now). May all the Buddhas, Bodhis, Arhats, and Tulkus, past present and future, be with the Sherpas and climbing teams as they move forward and upward. :)
Posted by: Susi Johnston on 4/19/2015 at 7:00 am
I’m writing to you from my home in Bali, Indonesia. Just to say three cheers for RMI, always a solid team of solid climbers. The RMI legacy of Everest pioneers and the amazing training ground you have on Mt. Rainier is unsurpassed. Just one favor I need to ask. Can you kindly go find my sister Emily Johnston at IMG the basecamp tents and give her an enormous hug and lots of love from her big sister, Susi in Bali? And please, ask her if she is wearing Bruno’s gold talisman. Thanks. Emily as an IMG and RMI seasoned guide is always so totally focused on the climb, the mountain, and the team, to “waste time” sending messages out. :) x x x
This is Dave Hahn with the RMI Everest expedition. Sorry to leave you hanging last night. We didn't get a dispatch out before all the power shut off and all of our forms of communication ended. It has been a stormy week here, so not quite as much solar gain as we would have hoped. Systems all through the valley are running on short time that way. Cell service, internet service, all of that was being affected by the storm. We're doing okay here. We tried to get up the Icefall yesterday morning, the Sherpas and myself, but it was not to be. We, along with perhaps 70 other Sherpas from other teams got turned around where the route has collapsed during the storm, natural movement of the glacier. The route needed some maintenance- some ladders put back in place. So without even getting to the midpoint of the Icefall, we were turned around, brought everything back down. Hoping to go up with conditions improve. Still storming here. Still windy up high, still cloudy. We are down at Base Camp today. I'll try to get a real dispatch out this evening. Bye now.
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Once again, we (the Sherpa team and guides) were ready to go up through the icefall on a recon mission. Once again we nipped it in the bud at three in the morning due to falling snow and cloaking clouds. The clouds were still thick as clam chowder when the team assembled for breakfast. That didn't stop us from gearing up and going for a walk in the new snow for an hour or so along the route to just where things get steep and serious at the base of the Khumbu Icefall. It was eerie and beautiful to have the giant towers and walls of ice drifting in and out of our view as we trudged quietly through the snow. Out in front in the whiteout, it was nearly impossible to tell anything as to whether the next step would be up or down or sideways, but we managed to find the route by braille in any case. The goal was to get some exercise and some more practice and -as much as anything- to occupy the mind in what could be construed as dull circumstances. There is still a blanket of snow over everything and so hiking Pumori's ridges (as we've done to reach both Pumori Camp One and Kalapathar) doesn't seem wise, what with shallow powder over uneven rock. We passed the afternoon playing games and monkeying around with internet/3G connectivity.
Tomorrow, for sure... up and at 'em.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Dave - really enjoy reading your daily updates, and as always love the photos when there are some posted. Wishing you and your team the best at the best, and a summit for the count. Billy Idol has a wonderful song for the climb—Sweet Sixteen.
Climb on :))
Posted by: Mary on 4/17/2015 at 5:51 am
Hi Larry, JJ, Dave and Team ... We are reading your blogs everyday. Keep your spirits up ... As we know you most certainly are! Fred K
Hello this is Dave Hahn with RMI's Everest Expeditions calling in. I promise I wrote a nice dispatch but lost connectivity before sending it to you, so we'll have to do a voice dispatch. It's all good here. It's snowing lightly, it's been snowing since about mid-day but just lightly. We are still holding on to the hope that the Sherpas and one or two of the guides might get up in the morning for a scouting trip through the Ice Fall. Of course that is weather dependent as always. Today the team went over their gear, trying to streamline their systems for climbing fixed ropes. They checked out their down suits trying to get a little bit more familiar with that gear. Our Sherpa team did the same. Fairly quiet day, nobody else is going through the Ice Fall either a few people nibble at the base of the route today just stretching their legs and working their technique.
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
RMI Guide Dave Hahn calls in from Everest Base Camp.
Chheuring letting it flow and looking great as always! Sending good weather wishes your way. Miss you all! xo
Posted by: Erin on 4/16/2015 at 8:04 am
Happy Thurs from 600’ of elevation in Indiana Larry + JJ / team…Sounds like a Weather Prayer is a good idea - OK you got it :)...Waltero…Enjoying the dispatches…Say hey to EBCp for me.
Dave Hahn with the RMI Everest Expedition. We are without internet this evening, due to forces beyond our control. We are doing fine. It was another waiting day. There was still all of that snow on the ground from the bigger storm and the threat of more falling, but in the end we didn't get that much more today. It was pretty cloudy. Our team went for a climb to the face of the the steep part in the icefall, so we went about an hour to an hour and a half breaking trail to the start of the technical sections in the icefall. We made a good morning of it, and taking it easy this afternoon mostly at camp as we wait and see. Nobody wants to push up through the icefall right now with that possibility for more snow coming. We may have to do a similar program tomorrow- hiking, exercise, training, and then will hope to hit the icefall the following day. At least Sherpas and guides going up to preview it, but that that doesn't seem worthwhile at the moment, but another day or two, we'll see. Everybody is doing well. We'll let you know what happens. Thanks.
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
RMI Guide Dave Hahn checks in from Everest Base Camp.
Nice to hear your voice live from Everest Base Camp. Bet some of the men are going through a mini Internet withdrawal. I won’t mention any names….haha. Glad you are all making the most of the conditions. Sending good thoughts for sunny days ahead. I know there is no such thing as bad weather just the wrong clothes. Love you all madly, Bonny
The snow began falling about the time we got into our sleeping bags last night. It didn't quit. When we poked heads out for a look-see around 3:30 AM, it was still piling up pretty good, and so there wasn't any consideration given for going ahead with the icefall plan for the day. Back to bed and wait and see, was the plan. It had snowed about a foot by breakfast. The gang assembled and we spent the day biding our time. We didn't have great conditions for walking with powder snow over uneven rock and ice. The clouds and flurries hung in all day. We could hear and occasionally see puja ceremonies going on at the camps around us. All-in-all it was a quiet day of waiting. We'll see what tomorrow brings.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Prayers for all, Peace be with you.
Posted by: Peter Gregory on 4/25/2015 at 1:56 pm
Prayers for all!
Posted by: Susan on 4/25/2015 at 8:07 am
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